An anonymous reader writes: American scientists and engineers are researching a new generation of UAV's that would be nuclear-powered. Why do this? They would have the capacity to stay over a target area for months and only be limited by the ordinance they could drop on a potential foe. They would be similar to a nuclear attack submarine but not limited to the amount of food on-board.

The article notes: “The blueprints for the new drones, which have been developed by Sandia National Laboratories – the U.S. government's principal nuclear research and development agency – and defense contractor Northrop Grumman, were designed to increase flying time ‘from days to months’ while making more power available for operating equipment, according to a project summary published by Sandia,” the paper reported.

Such a proposal would have the power to create a drone with vastly more powerful capabilities than anything seen before. There is only one problem, what happens if a nuclear drone ever crashed or was shot down?